Memorizing Your Speech

Here is a letter that I recently received. I thought that the comments and questions were excellent and that they might reflect some of the thoughts that others are experiencing. With this in mind I’m sharing a portion of the letter along with my response. I have modified the letter slightly so that the writer remains anonymous.

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Hi David

I like the new format of your website, it's more eye appealing because of the color and structure of the content.

Well, as usual, I have been very busy and not able to update you. I have completed one short section of public speaking to a small group people. I was able to overcome nervousness during speaking but realize I could slow down the speed of speaking.

... snip ...

I did try to memorize my presentation so that words can flow more fluently right at the beginning and reduce nervousness. What do you think of this?

Best regards
XXXXX

Hi XXXX,

Thanks for writing and for your feedback.

A lot of people find that their rate of speech changes (either speeding up or slowing down) when they are in front of an actual audience. You have already started to deal with this by acknowledging it and working on it.

Many people just abandon a challenge such as public speaking when they run into a small problem like this - good job for persisting.

Keep in mind that although the nervousness may have come through in your voice your audience is likely to be much less aware of it then you are.

Finally, with regards to memorizing your speeches...

This is a personal choice. I find that if people try to memorize the speech word for word then if they forget a few words they are in real trouble. Instead I encourage people to memorize the key points they want to cover and then construct "mini-speeches" around those concepts. You may want to memorize a few key points of each of the mini-speeches as well, but eventually you will get to the point that your speech is broken down into little "sound bites". Each of these sound bites you will know well and you can speak about very naturally. At this point if you forget a specific word it's not a big problem - you can still articulate your thoughts about the particular point.

My best suggestion is to try whatever seems best for you and see if it works. If you have a better memory then me and you can memorize it word for word then give it a try.

I really like your question and I am going to use it in an upcoming newsletter. Is that alright with you? I'll keep it completely anonymous if you want.

Best regards,

David.

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Copyright © 2007 David Mudie All Rights Reserved

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